Houdini Action Figure
Harry Houdini was an accomplished magician and master of escape. His awe inspiring shows and death defying public performances earned him the title of “World’s Greatest Escapologist!” This 5-1/2" (14 cm) tall, hard vinyl action figure comes with all the classic tools of the trade: a cloth straight jacket, two sets of plastic shackles, a plastic chair and a bit of rope.
Harry Houdini (March 24, 1874 – October 31, 1926), whose real name was Ehrich Weiss (which was changed from Erich Weisz when he immigrated to America), was a Hungarian magician, escapologist (widely regarded as one of the greatest ever), stunt performer, as well as a skeptic and investigator of spiritualists, a film producer, actor, and an amateur aviator.
Houdini Action Figure
1878-1898: From Hungary To America, The First Stage
The future "Genius of Escape Who Will Startle and Amaze" ran away from home when he was twelve. A postcard from "Your truant son, Ehrich Weiss," to the mother he adored is the earliest example of Houdini's handwriting in the collections of the Library of Congress, relic of the early evasion by the young man who had been born Erik Weisz in Budapest, Hungary, on March 24, 1874. When this postcard was written, Rabbi Mayer Samuel Weiss was father and husband to the impoverished immigrant family struggling to become established in America while communicating primarily in German, Hungarian, and Yiddish. Their name had been changed from Weisz to Weiss by immigration officials upon their arrival in the United States c. 1878. Mayer Weiss was to serve as rabbi of the German-speaking Zion Reform Jewish Congregation in Appleton, Wisconsin. His tenure proved short, however, and after a life of hardship he died on October 5, 1892. Having lost his father at an early age, Houdini sustained an exceptionally strong relationship with his mother, Cecilia Steiner Weiss, both as a child and as an adult.
Houdini Action Figure
1920-1926: Mediums and Magic
Houdini's formal education was slight; his self education, immense. "My mind," he is often quoted as having said, "is the key that sets me free." The magician informed and developed that mind through intensive reading; as he did so, he built a formidable library. When, in the 1920s, Houdini strode into the public arena to confront fraudulent mediums, he proceeded from an inner fortress lined with books and manuscripts. His attacks emanated both from shameless self-promotion and sincere commitment to the public good. His exposures covered a rich panoply of psychic fraud, including slate writing, spirit photographs, "finger printing a spirit," and trumpet mediums. His greatest challenge was Mina Crandon, the medium known as Margery. Like Houdini, Margery was brilliant at what she did and what she did was seance magic. A woman who confounded and fooled one established academic mind after another, she found her greatest champion in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, a staunch defender of spiritualism. The major battle was between two master tricksters, but it also set Houdini and Sir Arthur at each others' throats. Fallout in the press pumped extra energy into Houdini's career and he took his show to the Hippodrome. He also left a legacy of healthy skepticism to succeeding generations.
Houdini Action Figure
Houdini's love of children shines through in photographs. He was capable of combining great empathy with exposes and showmanship. This was apparent in his celebrated 1926 submersion in a sealed coffin. "The Genius of Escape" had become the icon of magic and, within his culture, a seminal creative force.
1926 : Change of Venues
Houdini died on October 31, 1926. Reports of his death showed that the man of mystery could never be reduced to fact or captured forever by linear text. He left behind individuals committed to the perpetuation of his memory. Houdini would now perform through the imagination and technologies of the future. He left us a legacy, a legend, and a challenge to continue great escapes.
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